This 6-page
report
is
derived primarily
from the Magonia Database, sightings catalogued by
Jacques Vallee and
presented in his great work, Passport to Magonia. No
doubt some of
these
came from Charles Fort. This report deals only with
sightings prior to
the 20th Century. Four entries, at the time of this
writing that is,
were taken from the UFO Evidence, 1964 (Hall). The
illustration used
above came from Jim Klotz' wonderful web site,
ufopop.org/.

Ourthanks for
ALL these
chronologies must go to our documentation team: Richard
Hall (the
original
1968 chronology from UFOE II), William Wise
(Project Blue Book Archive), Dan
Wilson (archive researcher), and Brad Sparks
(Comprehensive Catalog of
Project Blue Book Unknowns). Last, but not least, our
thanks to Jean
Waskiewicz
who created the online NICAP DBase (NSID) that helped
make it possible
to link from the cases to the reports themselves. .

In regard to the "airship sightings" (particularly the
1897 incidents),
on June 23 of this year (2006) I received an email from Thomas Eddie
Bullard, the
leading expert on these events. His email is presented
in its
entirety in the link given. To summarize, there are two
sentences that
say it all: "I've come to the conclusion
that there are no genuine UFOs among the 1897 airships,
though the
matter is more complicated that just hoaxes."......"The
reliable
airship stories are not
spectacular and the spectacular airship stories are not
reliable.
This pattern repeats throughout the two thousand or more
reports
until there is nothing left that I would want to stand
up and defend as
a genuine UFO. There are some impressive UFOs
pre-1947, but they
are not to be found in the various sightings waves of
UFO prehistory."

In December of 2006 Dr. Eddie Bullard provided a report
by a medical
doctor/amateur astronomer that looks like the first
incident that can
be classified as an actual UFO. See Brad Sparks' report,
April 15, 1897; St.
Louis, MO.

A strange "aerial construction" bearing lights and
making
engine noises flew low over this town. Local people
also described it
as a giant bird covered with large scales producing a
metallic noise.
Although not an actual landing, this is the first
instance of close
observation of an unknown object at low altitude in
the nineteenth
century. (Magonia #1, Fort 638; Anatomy 11)

Dec. 7, 1872; Banbury, Great Britain
1:00 a.m. At King's Sutton an object resembling a
haystack flew on an
irregular course. Sometimes high, sometimes very low it
was
accompanied by fire and dense smoke. It produced the
same effect as a
tornado, felling trees and walls. It suddenly vanished.
(Magonia #2,
Fort 189)

1877; England
Three meteor-like objects moving together with
"remarkable slowness"
flew across the sky, visible about three minutes,
"moving with the same
velocity and grade of regularity. . [as] a flock of wild
geese."
[Credit: Charles Fort, from Report of the British
Association, 1877-152]

1880; Aldershot, Great Britain
A strange being dressed in tight-fitting clothes and
shining helmet
soared over the heads of two sentries, who fired without
result. The
apparition stunned them with something described as
"blue fire."
(Magonia #3, FSR 61, 3; Magonia)

May 15, 1879; Persian Gulf
9:40 p.m. Two very large "wheels" were seen spinning in
the air and
slowly coming to the surface of the sea. Estimated
diameter: 40 m.
Distance between the objects: 150 m. Speed: 80 km/h/
Duration: 35 min.
Witnesses aboard the ship "Vultur" (Magonia #4, Round up
17; Anatomy
12)

1880; Eastern Venezuela
A 14-year-old boy saw a luminous ball descending from
the sky and
hovering near him. He felt somehow "drawn" to it, but
succeeded in
backing away in spite of his terror. (Magonia #5, Lor.
III 2O6)

March 26, 1880; Lamy, New Mexico
Evening. Four men walking near Galisteo Junction were
surprised as they
heard voices coming from a "strange balloon," which flew
over them.
It was shaped like a fish and seemed to be guided by a
large fanlike
device. There were eight to ten figures aboard. Their
language was not
understood. The object flew low over Galisteo Junction
and rose rapidly
toward the east. (Magonia #6, FSR 65, 3)

June 11, 1881; Between Melbourne and Sydney at sea,
Australia

4:00 a.m. The two sons of the Prince of Wales, one of
them the
future king of England, were cruising aboard
"LaBacchante" when an
object resembling a fully lighted ship was seen ("a
phantom vessel all
aglow"). (Magonia #7, Fort 637; Anatomy 12)

Oct. 24, 1886; Maracaibo, Venezuela
During the night, which was rainy and tempestuous, a
family of nine
persons, sleeping in a hut a few leagues from Maracaibo,
were awakened
by a loud humming noise and a vivid, dazzling light,
which brilliantly
illuminated the interior of the house. The occupants
completely terror
stricken, and believing, as they relate, that the end of
the world had
come, threw themselves on their knees and commenced to
pray, but their
devotions were almost immediately interrupted by violent
vomiting, and
extensive swellings commenced to appear in the upper
part of their
bodies, this being particularly noticeable about the
face and lips. It
is to be noted that the brilliant lights was not
accompanied by a
sensation of heat, although there was a smoky appearance
and a peculiar
smell. The next morning, the swellings had subsided,
leaving upon the
face and body large black blotches. No trace of
lightning could
afterward by observed in any part of the building, and
all the
sufferers unite in saying that there was no detonation,
but only the
loud humming already mentioned. Another curious
attendant circumstance
is that the trees around the house showed no signs of
injury until the
ninth day, when they suddenly withered. (From Warner
Cowgill, U. S.
Consulate, Maracaibo, Venezuela in a letter posted in
Scientific
American).

Nov. 12, 1887 Cape Race, Atlantic Ocean
Midnight. A huge sphere of fire was observed rising out
of the ocean by
witnesses aboard the "Siberian." It rose to an altitude
of 16 m,
flew against the wind, and came close to the ship, then
"dashed oft"
toward the southeast. Duration: 5 min. (Magonia
#9, LDLN 48;
Anatomy 14)

1896-1897--Mysterious
"Airship"
reported all across United States.

1896; Arolla, near Zermatt, Swiss Alps
Aleister Crowley was walking in the mountains when he
suddenly
saw two little men. He made a gesture to them, but they
did not seem to
pay attention and disappeared among the rocks. (Magonia
#10, Magic
Without Tears, by A. Crowley) (Note: Crowley was the
notorious
Satanist.)

March 26, 1897; Sioux City, Iowa
Approximate date. Robert Hibnight bard was caught by an
anchor dropped
from an unknown flying machine 22 km north of the town.
He was
dragged over 10 m and fell as his clothes were torn.
(Magonia #11, FSR
66, 4)

March 28, 1897; Omaha, Nebraska
10:30 p.m. The majority of the population observed an
object arriving
from the southeast. It looked like a huge light,
flew
northwestward slowly, came to low altitude. A crowd
gathered at a
street corner to watch it. (Magonia #12, 185)

April 1, 1897; Everest, Kansas
9:00 p.m. The whole town saw an object fly under the
cloud ceiling. It
came down slowly, then flew away very fast to the
southeast. When
directly over the town it swept the ground with its
powerful light. It
was seen to rise up at fantastic speed until barely
discernible, then
to come down again and sweep low over the witnesses. At
one point it
remained stationary for 5 min at the edge of a low
cloud, which it
illuminated. All could clearly see the silhouette of the
craft.
(Magonia #13, FSR 66, 4)

April 12, 1897; Nilwood, Illinois
2:30 p.m. On the property of Z. Thacker, 19 km north of
Carlinville, an
unknown object landed. Before the three witnesses could
reach it,
the craft, which was shaped like a cigar with a dome,
rose slowly and
left majestically toward the north. Witnesses: Edward
Teeples, William
Street and Franklin Metcalf. (Magonia #14, 186; Anatomy
12)

Apr. 12, 1897 Girard, near Green Ridge, Illinois
6:00 p.m. A large crowd of miners saw an unknown object
land 3 km north
of Green Ridge and 4 km south of Girard. The night
operator of the
Chicago-and-Alton Railroad, Paul McCramer, stated that
he came
sufficiently close to the craft to see a man emerge from
it to repair
the machinery. Traces were found over a large area. The
object itself
was elongated like a ship with a roof and a double
canopy. It left
toward the north. (Magonia #15, 186,187)

April 14, 1897; Gas City, Indiana
3:00 p.m. An object landed 2 km south of Gas City on the
property of
John Roush, terrifying the farmers and causing the
horses and cattle
to stampede. Six occupants of the ship came out
and seemed to
make some repairs. Before the crowd could approach the
object, it rose
rapidly and flew toward the east. (Magonia #16, 188)

April 14, 1897; Cleveland, Ohio
Joseph Singler, captain of the "Sea Wing," was fishing
with S. H.
Davis, of Detroit, when they saw on the lake what they
thought was
a ship, about 13 m long, with a canopy. A man,
about 25 years
old, wearing a hunting jacket and a cap, was fishing
from the deck of
the object. Near him were a woman and a 10-year old
child. When the
"Sea Wing" came close to the craft, a large, colored
balloon rose from
the object, which flew up with it to an altitude of
about 150 m and
circled "like a hawk" before flying away. (Magonia #17,
189)

April 15, 1897; Linn Grove, Iowa
Morning. A large object was seen to fly slowly toward
the north. It
seemed ready to land and five men (F. G. Ellis, James
Evans, David
Evans, Joe Croaskey, Benjamin Buland) drove toward it.
About 7 km north
of Linn Grove, they found the craft on the ground, came
within 700 m of
it but it "spread its four giant wings and rose towards
the North." Two
strange figures aboard the craft made efforts to conceal
themselves.
Witnesses were surprised at the length of their hair.
Most
residents
of Linn Grove saw the craft in flight. (Magonia #18,
190)

April 15, 1897; St.
Louis, MO
7:45 p.m. This is the first report from the entire
period to be
declared a possible UFO. Dr. Eddie Bullard provided this
report to Brad
Sparks in Dec. 2006. A Medical doctor/amateur astronomer
observed a
cigar shaped object with a telescope.

9:00 p.m. A passenger train on the Wabash line, going
toward Quincy,
was followed by a low-flying object for 15 min between
Perry Springs
and Hersman. All the passengers saw the craft, which had
a red and
white light. After Hersman it flew ahead of the train
and disappeared
rapidly, although the train was then running at 65 km/h.
(Magonia #20,
190)

April 15, 1897; Springfield, Illinois
Two farm workers, Adolph Winkle and John Hulle, saw a
strange craft in
a field. They had a discussion with its occupants, a
woman and two
men, and were told the ship-had flown from Quincy to
Springfield in 30
min and that the crew was making electrical repairs.
(Magonia #21, FSR
65,1)

April 16, 1897; Downs Township, Illinois
Approximate date. While working in his field, Haney
Savidge saw an
aerial craft land near him. Six people emerged from it
and spoke to
him for a few minutes before leaving again. (Magonia
#22, 191)

April 16, 1897;
Vincennes, IN
9:00 p.m. A mysterious airship passed over the city
twice on the night
of Friday, April 16. According to the Vincennes Morning
Commercial, the
airship first appeared about nine o'clock, traveling
along the extreme
eastern portion of the horizon: A sphere of golden light
was first seen
in the vicinity of the Union Depot, from down in the
city. Those near
the ship claimed they could clearly see the dark lines
of its car,
although no passengers were observed. (The Valley
Advance, Vincennes,
Indiana, March 18, 1980 Vol. 16, No. 28. Taken from
Vincennes Morning
Commercial April 16, 1897)

April 17, 1897; Williamston, Michigan
Morning. At least a dozen farmers saw an object maneuver
in the sky for
an hour before it landed. A strange man near 3 m tall,
almost naked
and suffering from the heat, was the pilot of the craft.
"His talk,
while musical, seemed to be a repetition of bellowings."
One farmer
went near him and received a blow that broke his hip.
(Magonia #23;
196)

April 19, 1897; Leroy, Kansas
10:30 p.m. Alexander Hamilton was awakened by a noise
among the cattle
and went out with his son and his tenant. They saw an
elongated
cigar-shaped object, about 100 m long with a transparent
cabin
underneath showing narrow reddish bands, hovering 10 m
above ground.
They approached within 50 m of it. It was illuminated
and equipped with
a searchlight. Inside it were "six of the strangest
beings" the witness
had seen, also described as "hideous." They spoke a
language no witness
could understand. A cow was dragged away by the object
with the help of
a strong red cable; it was found butchered in a field
the next
day.
(Magonia #24, Anatomy 16)

April 20, 1897; Homan, Arkansas
6:00 p.m. Capt. James Hooton was hunting in the vicinity
of Homan when
he heard the noise of a steam engine and found an object
in a
clearing. It looked like a cylinder with pointed ends,
lateral wheels,
and horizontal blade over it. Hooton spoke with a man
who wore dark
glasses and walked behind the craft. There were three or
four
occupants. The witness was told this was indeed "The
Airship" and that
it used compressed air for propulsion. Hooton saw the
wheels spin as
the craft rose and flew away. (Magonia #25, FSR 66, 4)

April 22, 1897; Rockland, Texas
John M. Barclay was intrigued when his dog barked
furiously and a
high-pitched noise was heard. He went out, saw a flying
object
circling 5 m above ground. Elongated with protrusions
and blinding
lights, it went dark when it landed. Barclay was met by
a man who told
him his purpose was peaceful and requested some common
hardware items
to repair the craft. He paid with a ten-dollar bill and
took off "like
a bullet out of a gun." (Magonia #26, 192)

April 22, 1897; Josserand, Texas
Midnight. Frank Nichols, who lived 3 km east of
Josserand and was one
of its most respected citizens, was awakened by a
machine noise.
Looking outside, he saw a heavy, lighted object land in
his wheat
field. He walked toward it, was stopped by two men who
asked permission
to draw water from his well. He then had a discussion
with a half-dozen
men, the crew of the strange machine. He was told how it
worked but
could not follow the explanation. (Magonia #27, 193)

April 23, 1897; McKinney Bayou, Arkansas
Judge Lawrence A. Byrne of Texarkana, Arkansas, was
surveying a tract
of land when he saw a peculiar object anchored on the
ground. "It was
manned by three men who spoke a foreign language, but
judging from
their looks one would take them to be Japs." (Farish, in
Allende
Letters (Magonia #28, Award Special, 1968) )

April 25, 1897; Merkel, Texas
Evening. People returning from church observed a heavy
object being
dragged along the ground by a rope attached to a flying
craft. The
rope got caught in a railroad track. The craft was too
high for its
structure to be visible but protrusions and a light
could be
distinguished. After about 10 min a man came down along
the rope cut
the end free, and went back aboard the craft, which flew
away toward
the northeast. The man was small and dressed in a
light-blue uniform.
(Magonia #29, 194)

April 26, 1897; Aquila-Hillsboro, Texas
Approximate date. A lawyer was surprised to see a
lighted object fly
over. His horse was scared and nearly toppled the
carriage. When the
main light was turned off, a number of smaller lights
became visible on
the underside of the dark object, which supported an
elongated canopy.
It went down toward a hill to the south, 5 km from
Aquila. When the
witness was on his way back one hour later he saw the
object rising. It
reached the altitude of the cloud ceiling and flew to
the northeast at
a fantastic speed with periodic flashes of light.
(Magonia #30, 195)

May. 6, 1897; Hot Springs, Arkansas
Two policemen, Sumpter and McLenore, were riding
northwest of Hot
Springs when they saw a bright light in the sky. About 7
km farther
they saw the light again coming down to the ground. One
km farther the
horses refused to walk. Two men were seen carrying
lights. The lawmen
took their rifles, called the strangers, and were told
that
they
crossed the country with a flying craft. The silhouette
of the machine,
about 20 m long, could be seen in the clearing. There
was a woman
with an umbrella nearby. It was raining, and the younger
of the men was
filling a large container with water. The elder man had
a beard and
suggested that the policemen fly with them "to a place
where it does
not rain." The same witness went back through the same
spot 40 min
later and found nothing. (Magonia #31, FSR 66, 4)